ARCATA — Breaking away in the second half, Humboldt State men's basketball advanced to the California Collegiate Athletic Association tournament semifinals with a 68-54 victory over CSU Stanislaus at Lumberjack Arena on Tuesday.
Boxscore
Four players scored in double figures for the Lumberjacks, who improved to 25-2 overall. Ranked No. 3 in the nation for the second straight week in the NABC/Division II poll released Tuesday, the Lumberjacks will face Cal State Los Angeles on Friday on the campus of Cal State East Bay in Hayward. CSLA, the No. 6 seed, advanced with a 66-60 win over CSU San Bernardino on Tuesday.
"We just defeated a very good basketball team," HSU head coach
Steve Kinder said. "Now its time to pack our bags, get in that bus or van, and set up camp at CSU East Bay."
Leading by four points at halftime, the Lumberjacks quickly expanded their advantage to 10 points on back-to-back 3-pointers by Brandon Sperling and
Kyle Baxter to start the second period. HSU maintained a double-digit lead most of the second half, pushing it to 20 points twice.
Sperling led the way for HSU, scoring 16 points, including a 2-for-3 performance from 3-point range.
Elliot Babcock-Krenk scored 12 points,
Brian Morris added 11 with nine rebounds, and Randy Hunter had 10 for the Lumberjacks.
Kyle Baxter contributed to the victory with nine points, also dishing a team-high five assists with only a single turnover. As a team, the Jacks shot 46 percent from the field compared to the Warriors' 32 percent, also capturing the battle of the boards with 38 rebounds to CSUS' 31.
Two of the premier post players in the CCAA, Morris and CSU Stanislaus' Reggie Jones, were the focal point of their opponents' defensive efforts.
"It was a little bit of a chess match with Morris and Jones, a matter of who was goung to double-team who on which possession and how to adjust out of it," Kinder said. "Both players saw a lot of defensive pressure, which limited their stats from their averages."
Dan Daviess was the only Warrior to rach double figures, finishing with 11 points. Evan Scott added nine, and both Mactar Gueye and Jones scored eight points.
CCAA Championships
Tuesday, March 1
FIRST ROUND
| Time |
Teams/Results |
| 7:30 p.m. |
No. 1 Humboldt State 68, No. 8 Cal State Stanislaus 54 |
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| 7:00 p.m. |
No. 2 Cal State Dominguez Hills 75, No. 7 Chico State 59 |
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| 7:30 p.m. |
No. 6 Cal State L.A. 66, No. 3 Cal State San Bernardino 60 |
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| 7:00 p.m. |
No. 5 Cal Poly Pomona 69, No. 4 San Francisco State 66 |
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Friday, March 4
SEMIFINALS
| Time |
Teams/Results |
| 12:30 p.m. |
No. 2 Cal State Dominguez Hills vs No. 5 Cal Poly Pomona |
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| 3:00 p.m. |
No. 1 Humboldt State vs. No. 6 Cal State L.A. |
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Saturday, March 5
CHAMPIONSHIP
| Time |
Teams/Results |
| 5:00 P.M. |
Championship Game |
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